Of all the basketball gyms in the state of Indiana, why will the Final Four be played in the middle of an expansive, indoor football stadium in Indianapolis?

The Colonnade Group is one reason.

The Birmingham-based sports hospitality business is responsible for reconfiguring Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis' new domed venue, into a basketball-friendly site for the men's NCAA basketball tournament national semifinals and championship.

Playing in domed stadiums is nothing new, but the setup at Lucas Oil Stadium is -- the games will be played on an elevated stage in the middle of the football field.

"This is a whole new deal," said Robbie Robertson, the president and CEO of The Colonnade Group."Last year, in Detroit, was the first time we used the concept of playing in the middle of a football field."

If you've seen the SEC Tournament at the Georgia Dome, the court is usually built in a football end zone, allowing good views from traditional seats.

Extra bleachers are placed on the other side of the hardwood, but that limits attendance to about half of the dome's capacity.

By placing it in the middle of the stadium and building seats, capacity can reach 70,000-plus with good sightlines.

But it's a lot of work.

First, the floor must be elevated 29 inches -- another inch and federal law would require guardrails, spoiling the aesthetics.

After experimenting with the setting at the 2008 NCAA Tournament regionals in Houston and Detroit, The Colonnade Group and the NCAA-selected architectural firm HKS Inc. of Dallas had to figure out some quick solutions. The bench for players and coaches was below the floor, forcing some awkward stair climbing.

The solution?

"We call it the launching pad, and it's in front of the benches," said Robertson, who has run the company since its inception in 1991."It's a rubber- coated step system that runs the length of the floor, offering a quick, easy climb for players entering or exiting the game and a safe landing for a player diving for a loose ball."

The Colonnade Group works SEC and Big 12 events on an annual basis in entertainment and sports production, as well as providing skybox management for schools including LSU and tailgating hospitality at Alabama and Georgia.

But for the Final Four, employees and subcontractors for The Colonnade Group become an army of Bob the Builders, creating thousands upon thousands of new rows, complete with chair back seats, which start to climb from the ground after traditional accommodations are made for media and games operation on the floor. The makeshift seats actually cover much of the venue's original seating.

The plan also includes four quads of 600 seats on floor level for students from the Final Four schools.

"This idea was all new when we first tried it," Robertson said. "The NCAA wanted better viewing and more people. We are honored they chose us.

"We had a learning curve. The first year we did regionals (2008) we found the rise prescribed by the architects wasn't adequate, so we tweaked that."

This is the seventh Final Four the Birmingham company has worked, which reminds Robertson of the discussion about a potential domed stadium back home.

After traveling the country touring indoor stadiums, he's on board.

"There are a lot of things we could get with that kind of facility. Others have said we're short on facilities in Birmingham, and they are right," Robertson said."But this isn't a Birmingham issue, it's something the state of Alabama needs to do and help Birmingham with because it impacts the whole state."